


Growing Pains

by yunbuns



Series: Baby Makes Three [1]
Category: Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy VII, Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe, Baby, F/M, Fluff, Fluff. Fluff everywhere., Pregnancy, also cravings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-28
Updated: 2017-02-28
Packaged: 2018-09-27 13:19:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,686
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10022360
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yunbuns/pseuds/yunbuns
Summary: With Xehanort out of town, a pregnant Tifa has to make do by herself.





	

_2:05_.

  tifa blinked sleepily at the time on the clock as she sighed into her body pillow, shifting her weight for the umpteenth time that night. she had been at this for the past hour and no matter how many times she tried to adjust herself she still could never find a comfortable position. a firm press against her stomach reminded her as to _why_ she was even up so late in the first place. normally she would try to guess what part of aurora was pushing out of her **(** seeing the imprint of her little one’s foot for the first time had been magical **)** , but tonight she was too exhausted for that and simply placed a hand on her belly in a attempt to soothe her child’s restlessness. the baby seemed completely unfazed by her gentle caressing and pressed hard against her bladder in response - making her grateful it was empty for once.

  ‘ **okay, _okay_. you win rory.** ’ tifa groaned towards the baby as she finally admitted defeat. her darling daughter was determined to keep her up for whatever reason so she figured she would just have to **(** grumpily **)** deal with it. tifa repositioned herself once more, this time to push her palms against the mattress to help her rise from the bed into an upright position. due to the size of her growing girth, she had to be careful as even moving around the bed sometimes caused her to overexert herself. glancing down at the normally-filled spot next to her, tifa could feel her hormones rapidly began to kick into overdrive at the reminder of xehanort’s missing presence. feeling tears beginning to well up in her eyes, she tried to resist the urge to cry by gripping the sheets around her tightly. he only had been gone for four days but to an anxious, pregnant tifa it was feeling more like a century. 

  xehanort, along with the rest of his lab associates, had gone to a science conference that had been planned well before aurora had even been thought about being conceived. it wasn’t exactly a trip he could suddenly cancel because his pregnant wife demanded it. he reassured her that he was only going to be gone for a week so she played the waiting game. aerith had often visited with takeout or to drive her to appointments but other than that she spent the bulk of her time making last minute preparations for her baby’s impending arrival. her pregnancy books called the habit ‘nesting’ and it did help ease her mind over her pregnancy pains somewhat but not completely. she was currently thirty-seven weeks along, nearly three weeks away from her expected due date. aurora had ‘dropped’ two days ago in preparation for her arrival and tifa was feeling the pressure - _literally_.

  she could feel the baby pressing against her pelvic which was uncomfortable and occasionally painful. she also had the urge to pee _constantly_ due to aurora’s head being so close to her bladder **(** another reason why it was hard to sleep through the night **)**. her midwife and info from her books had told her to expect this but experiencing it for yourself was a completely different then reading about on the pages of a book. figuring it wouldn’t due her any good sitting in a dark room moping, she placed a hand on the nightstand to help prop her up and another on her back for support, she exhaled before pushing herself up with success. sliding into her slippers, tifa began to waddle downstairs in hopes of finding a way to soothe her baby’s agitation.

  it was hard for tifa not to feel agitated herself as well. she was in her final trimester and her pregnancy symptoms were hitting her full force. when she had minimal morning sickness at the start of her pregnancy she had thought she was in for an easy ride; her body, however, had quickly let it be known that wasn’t going to be the case. for any symptoms she barely had, the others came in ten times worse. waves of hot flashes, radical mood swings, endless backache, constant heartburn, extreme cravings and excessive gas was just a small list of what she had experienced as a result of the life growing inside of her. according to reina, her midwife, her symptoms were perfectly normal yet it still didn’t change how much she hated them.

  tifa waddled into the kitchen and immediately made her way straight towards her best friend - the refrigerator. She had an extreme urge to devour _something_ and she scanned through the heaps of leftovers in the fridge, hoping to find something that would be able to subdue her insatiable hunger at least temporarily. There was half of a burrito left from her lunch with Aerith but that by itself wasn’t enough. Nothing was catching her eye until she noticed a medium sized jar filled with orange jelly. ‘ ** _hmm_...how does a burrito with some chocobo jam sound sweetie?** ’ tifa asked her child, softly rubbing her belly as she received a small kick in response. she knew that aurora couldn’t _actually_ understand but talking to her made her feel like they were more connected in a way. ‘ **i’m going to take that kick as a yes then.** ’ 

  closing the fridge shut, she quickly got the burrito in the microwave and popped open the jar of jam impatiently. tifa couldn’t figure out why she constantly craved _orange_ -flavored jam out of all things. she had never eaten it before getting pregnant but now she ate it constantly - sometimes by itself or as a condiment for a meal. she nearly cried once when xehanort had refused to drive to the store in the middle of the night to buy another jar for her. after that incident he always made sure they were always well stocked on jam to avoid her wrath. a loud beep from the microwave caused her to jump a bit in surprise and brought her back to the present. she checked on her food and once satisfied that the burrito had reheated all the way through, she carried her it and her trusty jam into the living room.

aurora was slowly beginning to settle down and tifa prayed that meant she would be able to get back to sleep soon. hating the silence that filled the house, she clicked the tv on and began to chew on her food absentmindedly. nothing except for d-rated movies sci-fi movies and infomercials were on at this time of night but tifa continued flipping through channels in an attempt to find something decent. she briefly stopped on a romantic drama before quickly turning the channel. the _last_ thing she needed was to watch a sappy romance movie in her current **(** hormonal and lonely **)** state. it was _not_ a good mix and would only end up with her sobbing over ice cream and peanut butter. 

  she finally gave up on finding something to watch and settled on the romantic drama. tifa was trying...but failing to not want to call him; she missed her husband and wanted him _here_ with her and their baby. aurora’s restlessness wasn’t the only reason she couldn’t get any sleep. she was anxious, obnoxiously so. it was another symptom that reina, claimed was ‘ _normal_ ’ but it didn’t stop for her from being frustrated. she had doubts about if she would be a good mother. she was constantly worried that she would go into labor early without xehanort present or something might be wrong with the baby once she was born. maybe it was her fault that aurora was so restless tonight in the first place? reina had told her once that babies could feel when their mother’s were upset or stressed too.

  being upset wasn’t going to do her or the baby any good so she tried to calm herself down with relaxation exercises she had learned in lamaze class. ‘ _breathe tifa. everything is fine. aurora’s healthy and safe. xehanort will be home in a few days. everything’s fine._ ’ tifa told herself as she bit on her lip and started playing with her wedding band. ‘ _just breathe in and out. everything is going to be okay._ ’ she repeated, closing her eyes and focusing on the rhythm of her breathing and the baby’s movement. ‘ _breathe in and out. breathe in and out._ ’ she felt her body began to relax and the sounds of the tv gradually began to grow distant. the last thing she heard before falling asleep was the leading man telling the leading lady how much he loved her.

* * *

suddenly she felt someone gently shaking her and a tired yet familiar voice calling her name. ‘ **tifa? _tifa_?** ’

tifa rubbed her eyes sleepily before blinking slowly, _‘_ **...** **xehanort?** _’_ for a moment she thought she was dreaming as she wiped away the drool that had formed along her cheek from sleeping.

‘ **in the flesh.** ’ he answered dryly as he eyed the leftovers of her earlier meal in distaste. 

‘ **what...what time is it?** ’ tifa asked, deliberately ignoring his disapproving stare at her choice of food. she felt groggy and her lower back was beginning to ache. falling asleep on the couch was starting to seem like not such a good idea. 

xehanort pulled up his sleeve, squinting in the half-dark at his watch, ‘ **it’s 7:50. how long have you been sleeping in here?** ’

‘ **i came down here around 2...maybe.** ’ she rubbed at her eyes again, now more fully aware of her surroundings. xehanort looked over her with concern while a commercial play across the tv behind him. on the coffee table, a half opened jar of jam sat next to a plate with nearly finished burrito on it. she was sad that she hadn’t finished it off. ‘ **you’re home early**.’ she stated, happily making room on the couch for him to sit. ‘ **why didn’t you tell me you were coming home so soon?** ’

‘ **i was uncertain if i would even be allowed to leave early to begin with. i didn’t want to risk disappointing you so i let it be a surprise instead.** ’ he answered as tifa snuggled against him, pausing to kiss the top of her forehead. ‘ **ansem gave me permission to leave once we were through with our final presentations.** ’

‘ **well** **how do they all go?** ’ she asked eagerly.

‘ **great actually. i believe we’ll be given more research grants than even ansem anticipated.** ’ xehanort admitted proudly as he loosened his tie. ‘ **but that is all irrelevant right now - why are you up so late?** ’

‘ **our little one wouldn’t let me sleep.** ’ it wasn’t the entire reason but it  _was_  still technically true. ‘ **she’s been active all night so i decided to have a snack.** ’ 

‘ **...i see.** ’ tifa smiled softly at the amount of disgust that oozed out of his short reply. xehanort could grasp complex formulas and equations but he still couldn’t comprehend how her cravings worked. in his defense she barely understood them herself. ‘ **i still don’t understand where you get the ideas to mix these strange concoctions together nor why you like eating them so much.** ’ 

‘ **blame our daughter.** ’ tifa retorted with a yawn. ‘ **i never ate jelly burritos or kimchi and ice cream together before i got pregnant did i?** ’

‘ **no** ,  **you didn’t. it still doesn’t make it any less strange.** ’ xehanort frowned as he moved his hand down toward her bump, ‘ **how are you feeling? have you been in any pain since she dropped?** ’ 

‘ **besides some back pain here and there, i feel fine.** ’ she explained, placing her own hand over his. ‘ **at my appointment, reina said aurora and i are both perfectly healthy.** ’ 

’ **we don’t want that to change either. you should be in bed getting some proper rest.** ’

tifa huffed as she gave him a small shove. ‘ **you’re one to talk. you need to sleep just as much as me.** ’  


‘ **that i do.** ’ he agreed as he began to stand with a stretch. ‘ **i also have to go back to the office in the afternoon and finish up some last minute assignments.** ’  


tifa’s smile quickly faded and she glanced down at her hands in disappointment. ‘ ** _oh_...okay then.** ’

her sudden change of demeanor wasn’t subtle **(** tifa was never good at hiding her feelings completely  **)** nor was he inclined to ignore it. ‘ **what’s wrong?** ’ he asked.

‘ **nothing.’** she lied, her response too quick.  


he eyed her quietly, battling on what to say next. ‘ **tifa wha-** ’

‘ **what do you want me to say xehanort?** ’ tifa blurted, her buried emotions getting the best of her. ‘ **that i don’t want you to leave again? because i don’t!** ’ she shifted uncomfortably as she tried **(** unsuccessfully **)** to control her tears. ‘ **nearly everyday you’ve been gone i’ve just felt... _scared_. scared that i would go into labor while you were gone or that something bad might happen to the baby. i’ve practically had to stop myself from calling you every single minute of the day.** ’  


xehanort sighed softly as he sat down. ‘ **tifa look at me.** ’ he ordered calmly as he rubbed his thumb over her cheek, wiping away a falling tear. during these last weeks of her pregnancy, he had become all too familiar with tifa having sudden emotional outbursts. he had learned the hard way that he needed to choose his words carefully or risk making her even more upset. ‘ **everything is _okay_. i’m here now and i’m won’t be going anywhere nor will i miss anything.** ’

‘ **i-i know. i’m sorry...it’s just i’m trying not to be needy but i can’t help it!** ’ tifa sniffled as she tried to regain her composure. ‘ **i want you here with meb-but i know your work is important too.** ’ she admitted as her tearful eyes finally met his.

‘ ** _you_ are what’s important to me tifa.** ’ he reassured, squeezing her hand for emphasis. braig and aeleus often teased him about how he had left them behind to become a ‘family man’ due to how he didn’t put in overtime and work overnight anymore. things had changed for him and while he did get nostalgic about arguing about theories or working on new hypotheses up until dawn, he loved coming home to his wife even more. he had different obligations now, _better_ obligations. ‘ **if you want me to stay home i will simply finish what i can here and fax it to the office. it isn’t that dire.** ’ 

‘ **are you sure?** ’ tifa asked.

‘ **i’m positive.** ’ xehanort answered.

‘ **you don’t think i’m being too demanding?** ’  


xehanort rolled his eyes, ‘ **you’re _pregnant_ tifa. you could demand for pigs to fly and i would manage to find a way to make it happen.** ’

she smiled as he wiped the last of her tears away. ‘ **a flying pig would actually make a nice first pet for rory.** ’ she teased with a weak laugh before sighing lightly. ‘ **i...feel better now. thank you for dealing with me and my mood swings.** ’

‘ **you’ve dealt with my many temper tantrums in the past so it’s only fair i deal with yours every now and then. just don’t get used to it.** ’ he warned with a sly smirk. ‘ **i’m giving you a pass with you being pregnant and all.** ’

‘ **i’ll make sure to remember that.** ’ tifa smiled then paused in thought, scrunching on her nose before speaking again, ‘ **i think all that crying has made me hungry again...** ’

‘ **for what?** ’ he asked, secretly dreading the answer.  


‘ **some ice cream with...olives and pickles. maybe some peanut butter too.** ’

xehanort grimaced in disgust, ‘ **that sounds...absolutely atrocious**.’ he replied while helping her rise from the couch. 

‘ **don’t knock it until you try it.** ’ tifa said defensively with a pout, hand propping her back as she rose slowly.

‘ **i would rather not. i prefer my ice cream plain and simple.** ’ ‘ _i also like the idea of not spending the entirety of my morning vomiting._ ’ although he didn’t dare say the latter out loud.

‘ **that’s** _ **boring**_ **!** ’ tifa rambled as she lead him into the kitchen. ‘ **why don’t you try adding hot sauce to yours? oh! how about mixing hot sauce and chocolate _together_...** ’ 

* * *


End file.
